I have a strange weakness for casseroles. I’m not really sure where it originated. We certainly didn’t eat them growing up. In fact, I think they were almost banned. I seem to recall something about my dad being a little, er, overexposed to casseroles in his 1960s childhood, and the casserole subsequently enjoying least favored nation status in our house. The only childhood casserole I recall is the traditional Thanksgiving Green Bean casserole, but that almost doesn’t count, as Thanksgiving is incomplete with that dish. There were no hamburger pies, no cheesy chicken chili bakes, no turkey tetrazinnis in my past. So why do I get so excited by the thought of a Tater Tot Casserole now?
If you think about what most casseroles actually are, it’s hard for me to understand why people don’t like them. You basically have meat, pasta, and tons of cheese, all mixed together and baked into one-dish perfection. What could possibly be wrong with that? This was supposed to be the winter of casseroles, and it didn’t occur to me until this week that so far, there hasn’t even been one! Of course, there hasn’t really been winter until recently, either.
So tonight is the night. The night of the Ultimate Tuna Noodle Casserole.
